Colorado rule lets massacre trial jurors dig into thorny issues
By Keith Coffman and Daniel Wallis CENTENNIAL, Colo. (Reuters) – Lobbing questions on topics ranging from loading ammo clips to booby-trapping apartments and the chemistry of gunshot residue, jurors have waded into the thick of the Colorado movie massacre trial as they weigh the fate of gunman James Holmes. Admonished by Arapahoe County District Court Judge Carlos Samour several times a day not to discuss the case with each other or anyone else, inside Courtroom 201 they have taken to their role with energy. The jurors will first decide if Holmes is guilty of killing 12 people and wounding 70 more, and then whether he is to be executed. Colorado is one of only three U.S. states, along with Arizona and Indiana, where jurors have a mandated right to question witnesses in both criminal and civil trials.
